Entergy Louisiana proposes $721 million project in Jefferson Parish

Entergy Louisiana is proposing a $721 million project to build a new electricity-generating unit at its Ninemile Point plant in Westwego. The Louisiana Public Service Commission will have to approve the project and decide what construction costs will be paid by Entergy Louisiana customers. Company officials say the 550-megawatt generator will be fueled by natural gas and that its design could produce fuel savings for customers—by $26 million to $53 million per year. A portion of the output would be purchased by two other Entergy Corp. utilities, Entergy Gulf States and Entergy New Orleans. Plans call for the unit to begin generating by mid-2015, replacing two 1950s-era generators at Ninemile Point that have been deactivated. The plant would provide power for the Amite South region, which is east of metro Baton Rouge to Mississippi and south to the Gulf of Mexico. The area includes metro New Orleans. Entergy says the new unit will create 17 jobs.